The Sharp Knife
by SweetWillowTree
Summary: "The sharp knife of a short life. Well I've had, just enough time." It feels like I was destined for this. Between vampires, werewolves and Originals, I guess I was always supposed to die young. M for language and sexual content.
1. The Words

** A/N: This isn't a songfic. This first chapter is just an anomaly. I do plan on continuing it from here, based on the feedback. So if you like it, please review and let me know.**

** Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. The song 'If I Die Young' belongs to The Band Perry.**

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><p>This one goes out to the ones I love,<p>

Isn't that a little melodramatic? Well, I guess the fact that this letter exists is exactly that: Melodramatic.

I'm crying already. I promised myself that I wouldn't cry my way through the next year, but here I am already. How am I going to get through writing this if it's tear-stained?

_If I die young, bury me in satin; Lay me down on a bed of roses; Sink me in the river at dawn; Send me away with the words of a love song._

The point of this is that if I die unexpectedly (as it will seem to you), I assume that someone (Damon) will tear apart my room and find my diary. Hopefully this will explain some things to you, and grant you some closure.

I went to the doctor today. The Gilbert's have a history of cancer, so since I've turned 18, I go every six months to get checked out. This was only my second visit...

They found something.

It took a couple of days for them to analyze the test results properly. The doctor tried to explain it to me, but I was panicking and could only understand the basics.

I'm dying. And there's nothing they can do.

There's a tumour buried in my brain. They can't operate; it would kill me. They'll give me drugs for the pain, but that's all the can do.

They gave me a year. So I have a year to do everything that I need to do.

_Lord make me a rainbow, I'll shine down on my mother; She'll know I'm safe with you when she stands under my colours. And life ain't always what you think it ought to be; No, she ain't even grey, but she buries her baby._

To Jeremy:

You'll almost be 18 if I last the full year. Ric will still be around for you, but I know... God, I can't do this. I can't write this to you, knowing...

You'll be alone. Or, at least, you'll feel alone. Mom, Dad, Jenna, John, me... But you won't be alone! Ric is still there, and he needs you too! Right now, the two of you are downstairs, playing video games.

Damon cares about you a lot, even if he won't say it. Bonnie loves you so much.

So please, don't give in to the pain. Just know that I'm watching over you. And I love you. So much.

_The sharp knife of a short life. Well I've had, just enough time._

It feels like I was destined for this. Between vampires, werewolves and Originals, I guess I was always supposed to die young.

But I still wish it wasn't true. Now I'm sobbing again.

_If I die young, bury me in satin; Lay me down on a bed of roses; Sink me in the river, at dawn; Send me away with the words of a love song._

Bonnie and Caroline:

I love you both. You've been there for me through everything. You've seen what I've seen, and together, we've pulled through. If I didn't have the two of you, I would be so different. I might not even be here. So thank you!

I don't think I've ever properly thanked you for what you did after my parents died. You were kind, and doting, and protective, and understanding. I wouldn't have been able to make it through even that if you both hadn't been there.

Bonnie; Watch out for Jeremy. He's alone now. He'll need the help. He'll need you to do the hard stuff, like you did for me. Drag him out of his own head, make him live again.

Caroline; I know that this is a huge burden. But watch out for Stefan and Damon. They've both made me the centre of their worlds, and I need to know that they'll be okay. Because I know that if the roles were reversed, I would die without either of them.

I really am just like Katherine after all, huh? I love them both, but in such different ways.

_The sharp knife of a short life. Well I've had, just enough time._

Oh God, this hurts. I had to stop writing and take a shower so that the boys didn't hear me crying. I can feel myself dying already. Not from the tumour, but from the grief. I'm grieving for all of you, and I'm not even gone yet.

How am I going to be able to do this?

_And I'll be wearing white when I come into your kingdom. I'm as green as the ring on my little, cold finger. I've never known the lovin' of a man, but it sure felt nice when he was holding my hand. _

Stefan:

Oh Stefan! You were my everything for so long. And I know that now it's so different between us, but I've never stopped loving you. It just changed. I'll love you forever; at least that much is still true. So much happened; we both did so much to and for each other.

As strange as this will sound, I really do want you to forget about me someday. Or, at least, be alive on that someday. Or still be around. There will be other women for you to save, just like you saved me. Because that's the truth of us, Stefan. You saved me. Every day, for so long; You. Saved. Me.

Remember when I told you that I loved you for the first time? Wasn't that a beautiful moment? If you do force yourself to remember anything about me, remember that. It was our epic moment. It's one of my favourite memories.

_There's a boy here in town who says he'll love me forever; Who would have thought forever could be severed by the sharp knife of a short life. Well I've had, just enough time._

Da Dam Da DAMON

Sorry, I had to stop again.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

You don't know why yet. You will when I'm done writing this. I'm going to drive straight to your house, and find you, and confess a truth that's long overdue.

The truth of us is that I've failed you, so much and in so many ways. You've loved me for so long, and I've loved you too! I have!

I've loved you!

I love you!

Please know that. But I was so stuck, and I couldn't ever see you for what you really were. And even when I did, the feelings that I felt for you were so sharp, and so bright. They burned me, so I buried them. And I say this, knowing that Stefan is reading this too (and I'm sorry for what I'm about to say, Stefan), but I've loved you deeper than I loved him. But you've done so much, and hurt me, and I was so scared of you, and myself, and us.

I should have told you so long ago. I thought I had all the time in the world, even when I was faced with impending death.

But now I know that my time is limited. We weren't meant for forever, my love. (How's that for melodrama?) We were meant to be like a firework; blindingly bright but only momentary.

It kills me to know that I've wasted time with you. And it hurts me so much to know that I'll only be a dot on your own personal time-line.

One last thing for you, Damon. Watch over Jeremy. He thinks you're the be-all, end-all; and I can't stand the thought of him being alone. And you care about him; I know you do. And when you care about someone, nothing and no one can stop you. So I'm trusting you, whatever happens between us: Keep him safe.

_So put on your best boys and I'll wear my pearls. What I never did is done._

You may be wondering about something. You may be thinking that this is all unnecessary, because there's an easy way out. I could become a vampire. God knows there are enough vampires running around, who care about me, who would be willing to turn me.

But what I said in the past still holds true. I can never be a vampire. I don't want it. I've never wanted it.

And maybe that cheapens the sentiment of this letter. But for me, it is impossible. Please, try to understand that.

_A penny for my thoughts? Oh no, I'll sell them for a dollar. They're worth so much more after I'm a goner. And maybe then you'll hear the words I been singin'; Funny when you're dead how people start listenin'._

I don't know what else to put right now. I want this letter to go on forever, but I know it can't. You can read my journals too. But I've been so honest in them, that some people might be hurt.

If Damon hasn't already searched them out... There's a hidden door in the back of my closet. All of my journals should be in there, unless Jeremy found the stash and has published all of my secrets already.

Brat.

Maybe the journals will mean something to you. I hope they will. I hope they'll say what I won't have time to say, what I won't be able to say.

_If I die young, bury me in satin; Lay me down on a bed of roses; Sink me in the river, at dawn; Send me away with the words of a love song._

Ric: My life can be characterized by the title 'Parade of Parents'; I had Miranda and Greyson, John and Isobel, and you and Jenna. Yes, you Ric.

You took care of Jenna, and Jeremy, and even me, even if I sometimes didn't want it. You've given Damon someone to scheme with, and you cannot understand how grateful that makes me. Even I'm only beginning to understand it.

So you need to promise to always be in Jeremy's life. Always.

And Damon's. I find that I've gotten good at predicting his behaviour, and he might go off the rails for a bit.

But I have faith in you. You've done the impossible so many times already, that handling Jeremy and Damon at their respective worsts should be nothing.

_The ballad of a dove; Go with peace and love; Gather up your tears, keep 'em in your pocket; Save them for a time when you're really gonna need them. _

I want to tell you all that I'm at peace, that I'm okay. But right now, at the time that I'm writing this, I'm not at peace, not okay.

I'm so alone. I won't tell any of you, because I don't want my last year to be full of doom-and-gloom (again). I want to be happy, so I'll take the loneliness. It's my path anyways, right?

_The sharp knife of a short life. Well I've had, just enough time._

Ow. It hurts. My heart is breaking; I can hear it cracking. Haven't I been good enough? Why can't I just live like everyone else?

Is this all that I was meant to do? Help everyone around me to be happy, but never find true happiness myself?

Why me? I haven't done enough, I haven't loved enough, I haven't lived enough.

I want to travel the world. I want to get drunk and party in Vegas and remember nothing the next morning.

I want to watch Jeremy's (and Bonnie's?) kids be born. I want to see Stefan happy again, because I know that I've done terrible things to him. I want to see how Caroline and Tyler work out, because it's just so weird. I want to see Ric get married again, maybe.

I want Damon. Is a year going to be enough for him?

_So put on your best boys and I'll wear my pearls. _

I realize that this is a useless point, but don't mourn me too much. I'm mourning all of you enough already.

Maybe it'll be okay? Maybe I'll be reincarnated? Maybe I'll come back as an angel? Maybe I'll come back as an eggplant.

Be the best that I know you all can be.

For me.

Love, until my heart stops beating,

- Elena


	2. Day One

**A/N: Alright, so I'll be publishing ten chapters of this story, and here be chapter two! Let me know what you think! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries.**

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><p><strong>Day One<strong>

Damon Salvatore always found it exceedingly strange that after everything, Sheriff Liz Forbes still treated Stefan like a normal seventeen year old.

She had arrived at the boarding house, and politely asked for Damon, before eyeing the younger vampire with such a look that plainly stated 'Maybe you should scoot little boy? The grown ups are gonna talk now.' And so, Stefan left the house, and the sheriff followed Damon into the study, where they had been conversing about nothing for the past half hour.

Literally... Conversing. About. Nothing.

They seemed to have hit a supernatural lull, which absolutely no one was disappointed about. So the Founders Council, of which Damon was still the de facto leader, was on hiatus. But Liz still stopped by every so often, just to chat.

Damon figured that she didn't have too many close friends.

In any case, it was during this particular visit that he heard an intruder in his home. It most likely wasn't a 'real' intruder: Pretty much every supernatural creature in the tri-county area treated the boarding house as their crash pad whenever they felt like it. The intruder made herself known, however, within minutes of her arrival.

A small cough from the study door, and Damon looked over to see Elena, holding a bag.

"Hey," she said softly, before looking at Liz. "Good afternoon, Sheriff Forbes."

"Hello Elena. How have you been?"

There was a brief hesitation, and a flash of something in the girl's eyes, and then she smiled again.

"I'm well. I was just wondering if I could speak with Damon, but you two are busy, so I can just..."

Damon glanced over at the sheriff. "We were just finishing up, if you wanted to wait?"

Another smile from her.

"Sure. In the living room?"

He nodded, and she waved a little at Liz before turning and making her way upstairs.

"Do you think she's in trouble?" the blonde woman asked.

Damon shook his head. "Nah, she usually runs into Stefan's arms if it's urgent. She's probably just here to scold me about something."

The sheriff laughed. "Do you need scolding right now?"

"Hey!" the vampire answered, throwing his hands up in surrender, "I have been on my best behaviour. Not a person; not a puppy; not a fluffy little kitten. Which would be gross. The hair would just be a mess."

Liz only rolled her eyes in response and excused herself, leaving Damon to ponder why Elena would be here, in his house, waiting for him.

_Well_, he thought, _That's a loaded question... _

He entered the room to find her scanning a bookshelf, fidgeting with the ribbons that held the front of her peasant blouse together. He cleared his throat and she looked at him and picked her bag up off the floor, taking a few steps around the couch and towards him.

"Hey," she said with a coy smile.

"And to what do I owe this pleasure, Elena?"

He waggled his eyebrows, and, to his surprise, she giggled.

"I brought you a present," she answered excitedly, offering him the bag.

He took it, giving her an odd look before sitting down. Once seated, he pulled out the contents.

"My favourite scotch? Well that's... thoughtful."

He gave her another odd look, but she just smiled wider.

"And... a DVD of that crappy movie we saw in Phoenix while we were hunting Stefan."

She walked over and sat down next to him, grabbing the DVD case out of his hands, and pouting dramatically.

"It wasn't _that_ crappy. I thought it was hilarious! So bad, it was good!"

"No," he shook his head, "It was just bad. And what's up with all this; why the touching gifts?"

"Um..." Her features darkened, and she looked around the room frantically, as though trying to flee an inescapable truth. She rose to her feet and began pacing nervously, wringing her hands. "I wanted to – I _needed_ to-" She stopped, and looked at him. "Oh God, I can't do this to you!"

She turned on her heel and made for the front door, but Damon was faster, cutting her off before she could leave the room.

"Do what?" he insisted calmly, "What's wrong?"

There were tears in her eyes, but she blinked them away. Then, tenderly, she reached up to cup his cheek. She stood up taller, and he scanned her eyes, searching for something that would tell him that she didn't want what he thought she wanted. When he saw nothing to discourage him, he ducked his head towards her, and their lips met.

It was even better than he'd imagined! Considering that any other time they'd kissed, he had either forced himself on her, or been dying, he had spent quite a lot of time fantasizing about this exact moment.

It was a communicative gesture; gentle, and questioning, as though Elena were asking Damon to understand something. Her hands grazed over his torso to grip his shoulders lightly, and when she pulled away, she tucked her head against his chest, and inhaled deeply. He wrapped his arms around her, let his chin rest on top of her head, and frowned.

"What was that for?" he asked her.

She nuzzled further into him, shaking.

"Because I'm in love with you."

Bam! The words that he had waited so long to hear from her seemed to have frozen his brain, and he stood completely still, not saying anything.

Elena took a step back, out of his embrace.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry that I didn't – that I couldn't -"

Damon searched her eyes. "Is this a joke? Is Stefan standing outside?"

"What?" she exclaimed, offended. "Of course not! Why would I – How could I joke about something like this?"

"Well," he scratched the back of his head unconsciously, displaying his nervousness, "What brought this on?"

She bit her lip, but held his gaze. "I'm sorry that it's taken so long, Damon. But you were right; it just took me a while to process it. I've been thinking about this, a little bit every day, for so long, and I just can't pretend anymore. I want you; I love you."

The vampire took a deep breath, and backed up to reclaim his seat on the couch.

"Can I think about what this means? I just need some time to -"

Elena cut him off. "Yeah! Sure! Of course. I'll just head home, and..."

She drifted off, turning around and once again moving to exit the house. Damon evaluated the hurt look on her face with calculating eyes, and blurred across the room, repeating his movement from earlier.

"Okay," he said once she realized that he was standing in front her. Only an inch of space separated the two. "I've thought about it. I'm on board; I'm in it."

She smiled then, and his heart melted. It was the first genuine and unrestrained smile he'd seen out of her since she'd arrived. As though pulled by a force beyond her control, Elena stepped into his embrace once again, and leaned up to kiss him.

This time, it was different. She was clearly surer of herself, and Damon groaned at the passion he felt as their lips molded together. With both hands splayed across her back, he pressed her tightly against his torso. To his surprise, not only did she wrap her arms around his neck and grip his hair, but she writhed against him, grinding against his groin and causing him to gasp audibly into her mouth.

"Elena..." he growled, moving his hands to grip her hips, trying to stop her movements. He wanted to take his time here, but if she kept going like this, he wouldn't be able to control himself.

"Mm hmm..." she hummed back, her lips moving down his throat.

A split second later he spun them around and walked them back to the couch, before practically falling on top of her. They were a tangle of limbs as Elena continued her previous movements, grinding against Damon's leg, while he slid his tongue past her lips.

Damon could hardly believe what was happening. It wasn't until he had been plundering Elena's mouth for a few minutes before he stopped pulling back every few moments to double-check that it actually was _her_ that he was on top of. He didn't want to stop; didn't want to question why, after months of intense resistance, she would give in to him and admit the feelings that he could so plainly see in her. It was a conversation for another day.

He nodded to himself at that thought, causing Elena to giggle a little.

"What?" she asked him.

"Nothing." He kissed her lightly on the lips. "Nothing right now. Just absorbing."

She smiled against his mouth. "Okay, good."

And then they fell back into their tentative exploration of each other.

Elena's hands were slowly stroking along Damon's midsection; from his shoulders, down his abs, and back up again. She finally wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer.

Damon had begun with his hands trapped beneath Elena's body, but soon enough, one of them had broken free and was roaming along the leg that she had hitched around his hip. As her arms moved from his front to his back, her shirt moved up, and she whimpered when Damon began to lightly stroke, first the small expanse of revealed skin, before venturing upward to her ribs and her breast. He was shocked by what he found.

"Oh God!" he exclaimed, still not peeling his mouth from hers.

"What?" she asked, pulling back a little and cocking her eyebrow.

He formed his features into the most sinful look he knew. "You aren't wearing a bra."

She smirked. "Well, I was hoping for an explosive end to this conversation..."

The vampire didn't wait for any more. He started tugging at the ribbon holding the front of her peasant top together, intent on giving her exactly what she had come looking for.

Unfortunately, his movement was arrested when Elena's hand wrapped around his wrist.

"Wait," she whispered.

Damon paused for a moment, confused. "Are you serious?" he whined.

He was rewarded with a quiet laugh. "I don't want the first time we do this -" She waved between their bodies.

"Have sex?" he offered.

"Make love," she corrected, and he rolled his eyes, before giving up the facade and smiling widely.

She continued. "I don't want the first time we make love to be on your couch, where anyone can walk in."

"The house is empty!"

Elena huffed, and sat up, effectively pushing Damon back. "Can you seriously guarantee that no one will walk through that door within the next few hours?"

"Hours, huh?" he murmured, kissing her neck.

She giggled. "Yes, _hours_. Can you possibly promise that _no one_ will wander in during that time? This house is usually busier than a Starbucks."

He could see her point. Part of him didn't care, his desire was so strong. Another part of him would fly them to Paris if that's what she really wanted. And yet another part sort of wanted to keep this going on the couch, hoping that someone would walk in. He wanted _everyone_ to know this newest development. And not just the people that he knew; he wanted the whole world to know.

But as he was thinking this, Elena had slithered out from beneath him and started to back away toward the stairs.

"Well, how about this: I'm going up to your room to finish this up in your bed. Join me if you want..."

Then, she turned and ran up the stairs. Damon didn't even blink before breezing to his room, briefly registering her giggle as he passed her on the way up. He was sprawled on his bed, on his back by the time she caught up to him.

"Perfect," she grinned, striding forward to straddle him.

This time, Elena wasted no time in unbuttoning Damon's shirt, and when she had finally rid him of the offending piece of clothing, she sat back, her eyes scanning him from his face to his low-slung jeans.

"Enjoying the view?" he teased.

She slapped his chest lightly. "Shut up. I've spent so long trying to pretend that you're not gorgeous, just let me have a minute to bask."

That silenced him pretty effectively, and he tried very hard not to preen at the compliment. Then her tongue was making a trail down his chest, and he couldn't string thoughts together anymore. His back arched a little bit, and his jeans became tighter.

He reached down, trying to pull her back up his body again, but she resisted.

"I want you," Elena moaned, meeting his eyes. She wore a wicked grin. "I want to taste you."

He held her gaze as she snapped open the button of his pants. Slowly, she tugged his jeans and boxers off, and settled between his legs. He swallowed hard in anticipation, and when her lips wrapped around the head of his cock, he threw his head back and moaned.

"Jesus, Elena!" he yelled when she took in more of him. One of his hands tunnelled into her hair, seemingly of its own accord as he focused on keeping his hips still.

She took his exclamation as encouragement, and bobbed her head, taking the whole of him into her mouth. His hips bucked at he yelled out in surprise and pleasure.

Never ("Ah!"), in any of his fantasies of finally having Elena ("Sonofa- GAH!"), had Damon ever imagined this scenario. He always figured ("Ohh...") that when it eventually happened ("Yes! Yes!"), the roles would be reversed ("So close, Elena!"): It would be Damon between Elena's legs... His tongue exploring her folds... Tasting her... Claiming her...

That thought, coupled with Elena's fingers massaging his balls, are what pushed him over the edge. He was dimly aware of making a keening sound as he came into her mouth, his fingers still tangled in her hair. She kept moving for a few moments after he was finished, drawing him out until he finally begged her to stop. He wanted to take her, slam her back on the mattress and pound into her, but if she kept up her current ministrations, he would be spent before they even got to that part.

Damon was still coming down from his high when he noticed Elena kissing her way back up his chest.

"Why -" he choked out, "Why are you still wearing clothes?"

He could feel her smile against his skin, which, in turn, made him brighten. Not that he wasn't ecstatic already.

Elena made her way up to his lips, and kissed him lightly, her hair tickling him a little.

"I love you," he said quietly when she pulled back, tucking a strand behind her ear. Elena blushed and backed up to sit on the edge of the bed. "Hey!" Damon exclaimed, "Where do you think you're going?"

"I thought you wanted me out of my clothes?" she reminded him over her shoulder.

She stood up and bent over, untying her shoes, and offering him a particularly glorious view of her ass. He slid over behind her so she was standing between his legs, and rubbed up and down her thighs. She kicked off her shoes, and Damon reached around her to unbutton her jeans. Her hands covered his as they slid her pants down, and once she'd stepped out of them, she turned to face him.

"Wanna help with my shirt?"

He nodded and stood up. His fingers slowly tugged the knot on her breast, and the ribbon slid apart. He could feel Elena's eyes on him as he watched the ribbon loosen and her shirt slowly open up. When he finally threw the ribbon to the floor, he pushed the shirt over her shoulders and palmed her breasts, causing her to gasp.

"I need to be inside of you, Elena," Damon whispered hoarsely.

Her eyes were closed and she gripped his forearms. "Yeah..." she breathed in response.

Damon smirked and grabbed her hips. She screamed a little when he threw her onto the mattress. He pressed their chests together and claimed her lips in a bruising kiss as his hand played with the waistband of her black lace panties.

_This,_ he thought, _is more like it._

His hand moved up to lightly thumb Elena's nipple, and she whimpered.

"Damon... Please..."

He chuckled. "Do you want me inside of you?"

Kissing her ear, he pinched her nipple and she screamed out, "Yes!"

"How badly?"

Suddenly, she grabbed his hand and slid it between her legs. He groaned when he felt how wet she was.

"Fair enough," he rasped, and then tore the lace from her hips.

Her legs cradled his waist and their eyes met as he placed himself at her entrance. She nodded a little, and he slid into her to the hilt. Her back arched, and he licked all the way up her neck to nip at her earlobe.

"More," she breathed, her nails digging into her back.

He drew back out and then drove into her again, and this time, she cried out. As they moved together, their hips grinding in sync, Damon kissed every piece of her skin he could reach. She drove him crazy; every moan, every whimper, every sigh. She was perfection personified, but he'd already known that. He dimly wondered if it was experience or instinct on her part, but every move that she made drove him further and further to the edge.

"Elena," he grunted, returning his lips to hers.

"Yeah," she whimpered back.

"God... You're good. You're so... perfect."

Her hands moved to cup the back of his head, and her nails broke the skin at the back of his neck.

"Damon... I'm so close... Just..."

She stopped talking, and he felt her inner walls clamp down on him. He backed up to watch her as she came. At the sound of her screaming his name, he followed her over.

A sense of completeness stole over him as he spilled himself inside of her. He collapsed onto his side, pulling Elena close as she continued to tremble in euphoria. Despite the fact that they had both found their release, Damon found that he couldn't keep himself off of her, and pressed kisses along her neck, only half-conscious of what he was doing.

"Mmmm..." Elena moaned after a few minutes, still on her back and staring blearily at the ceiling. "That was lovely."

Damon was laying on his side, one arm around Elena, his chin resting on her shoulder. "Only lovely?"

She turned to look at him. "Perfect." A kiss. "I really love you, you know."

He smiled softly at her, and kissed her back. "I know. Haven't I been telling you that since, I don't know, forever?"

She grinned in response, and rolled over to stroke his cheek with her thumb.

"I have to be home by five," she whispered.

"Hm... I don't think so," Damon responded, tightening his hold on her and kissing his way down to her breasts.

"I know... I really do want to stay in this bed for... a long time. But it's Ric's birthday, and we're doing a family dinner, and -" She gave up speaking as Damon tongued her nipple.

"I could just come with you..." He didn't like this feeling, of having to ask to be invited into her life. Already, the peaceful feeling that had settled in his belly was fading.

Elena's fingers made their way into his hair, pulling him back up to face her.

"Well, first off: Jeremy didn't invite Bonnie, because we wanted it to just be the three of us. If he can't invite his girlfriend, I won't invite my boyfriend."

Relief flooded through him at the label that Elena had just offhandedly given him.

"Plus, it's Ric's day, and I don't want to make it all about us. Also," she bit her lip nervously, "I sort of wanted to tell Stefan myself."

And with that, Damon's stomach dropped again. She noticed, and kissed him again.

"What am I going to do to make you believe that I love you more than anyone else?" she sighed. "I need to tell him myself, because he knew how I felt about you before I even knew. And I don't want him to think that I'm trying to hide anything anymore."

At that, the vampire fell silent. Her words comforted him, but he still fell victim to his own insecurities. Like she could read his mind, she pushed him a little so that she was on top, straddling him and running her lips and tongue along his chest.

"Seriously," she murmured mischievously into his skin, "What do you want me to do to prove that I love you?"

Damon laughed. "I can think of a whole list of things..."


	3. Day Two

**A/N: Holy hiatus, Batman! It's been, what, like a year since I updated this. I plead business, in both writing, real life writing, and real life itself. I can't promise when I'll be updating again, except that I'm going to finish this story before focusing on another, so at least there's that. **

**Also, fyi, this will not be a happy tale. If you can't deal with that, go elsewhere. I'm sorry, but that's how it goes. **

**I haven't written in this mindset in a long time, so I apologize for any crappy writing. Also, I screwed up the timeline a little, but in my defence, I started writing this before season three clarified the canon timeline, so I'm still operating on my original assumptions. **

**Enjoy and review!**

** Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. The song 'If I Die Young' belongs to The Band Perry.**

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><p>Damon couldn't remember the last time he had been truly content. He figured that it must have been sometime when he was human. Sure, his hedonistic, careless lifestyle during most of his vampire life had been <em>fun<em>, but he'd never fallen asleep smiling.

Until now.

His bed smelled of Elena. He'd refused to changed his sheets after their afternoon tryst the day before, so when he laid down late in the night, he was surrounded by her. A day before, it would have tortured him to have her everywhere. But everything had changed.

He had no idea what had spurred her on to _finally_ admit to her feelings for him. Whatever it was, he couldn't particularly be sorry for it. For once, a step forward in their tumultuous relationship was not due to a life and death situation.

He considered this as he hummed his way through the empty boarding house, sincerely glad that Stefan was out for a few hours. He didn't want to answer stupid questions like, "Why are you humming?" or "Why are you smiling?" or "Jesus, Damon, what kind of woman has gotten you _this_ happy?"

Elena had called Damon that morning to reiterate that she wanted to be the one to tell Stefan about their 'recent development'. It probably would have annoyed him if she hadn't opened the conversation with, "Good morning. I love you." But she had, and she'd sounded so tender about it. A difficult feat, considering it had only been seven in the morning.

It was around two in the afternoon when there was a soft knock at the entrance. Damon blurred over from the parlour, schooling his features into his trademark smirk before opening the door to reveal Elena. He opened his mouth to greet her, but was struck breathless when her lips parted in a wide smile. Her eyes were practically glowing as she stepped past him to examine the foyer.

"Stefan isn't here," Damon informed her, closing the door and turning to place his hands on her hips, nuzzling into the back of her neck.

Elena turned, slinging her own arms over his shoulders and kissing him. He moaned into her mouth, pulling her closer. When she parted her lips from his, she pressed their foreheads together for a moment before breaking away entirely and smiling shyly.

"Hi," she grinned, biting her bottom lip.

He wanted to bite that bottom lip. His eyes were still trained on her mouth when she giggled.

"Really?" He met her gaze, registering that she was laughing at him. "I didn't think you could get any worse..."

Damon wiggled his eyebrows at her, guiding her to the couch with a hand on her lower back.

"It's the same rule that applies to your front door." He sat down and pulled her down to straddle his thighs. "You invite me in once, and I'll just keep coming."

He winked at her again, watching an attractive blush spread over her cheeks at his innuendo. He moved his hands up to cup her face and brought her close for another deep kiss. Her lips parted and he slipped his tongue into her mouth, stroking her own and coaxing a low moan from deep in her throat. His fingers danced under her shirt, grazing her skin until her own hands gripped his wrists.

"Don't tease," she mumbled against his lips. "We can't do anything until he gets back. He'll smell it, won't he?"

"So," Damon responded, trailing kisses down her jaw to her throat. "You're telling him today anyways. What's the difference?"

"Yes, I'm telling him that we're together. He doesn't need his nose rubbed in it."

He leaned back, pouting. "You mean the way you two rubbed my nose in it?"

"Damon," she sighed, stroking his jaw with her thumbs.

Inexplicably, her eyes filled with tears as he stared in horror. He'd meant it as a joke (sort of), but here she was, crying over it. His mind switched into high gear, trying to find a way to fix whatever he'd done.

"Hey," he whispered. "It's okay. We're together now; I'm over it."

"I know," she nodded quickly, smiling a little. "I'm sorry, I'm just -"

She never finished her sentence as they heard the front door open and close. Smoothly, Elena slid from Damon's lap, allowing him to cross the room to his liquor cart. He kept his back to the room as he heard Stefan's approach and entrance, Elena's heart pounding in the background of his thoughts.

"Hey guys," the younger vampire muttered distractedly. When Damon turned around, he was dropping his leather jacket onto a chair. "What're you doing here, Elena? Not that it isn't great to see you, but -"

"Oh, yeah," she giggled awkwardly, leaping to her feet and shuffling over to him. "Do you mind coming into the kitchen for second. I just wanted to talk to you about something..."

For a second, Stefan frowned, glancing over Elena's head to meet Damon's eyes. Both vampires were thinking the same thing: No matter where in the house they went, the elder would be able to hear everything. But apparently, all Elena wanted was the semblance of privacy, so Stefan nodded, allowing her to lead him out of the room.

At the entrance, he spun, raising an eye at his older brother before pointing at Damon, then where Elena had disappeared, then crossing his fingers and mouthing the word 'together'. Damon nodded slowly, an irrepressible grin tugging at his lips. Stefan nodded slowly, then winked at his older brother and made his way into the kitchen.

Damon waited a whole three seconds before blurring after the pair, leaning, unseen, against the wall outside the kitchen. He could hear Elena's heart racing with nerves, and in his mind's eye, imagined her wringing her hands as she paced. If he were a little nicer, he would just walk in and tell her that Stefan had already guessed the gist of her great disclosure. But while he loved her with every ounce of his being, he did sort of enjoy leaving her hanging a little.

"Elena?" he heard Stefan prod quietly.

"Look, Stefan," she began, probably biting her lip. "I know that we've been broken up for a while, and you'll probably think I'm ridiculous for needing to tell you this, but -"

"Elena," he repeated, more seriously this time, although there was an amused hint to his voice that only Damon would be able to hear. "I think I know what you want to say, and to tell you the truth, I agree entirely."

"You... agree?" Elena whispered, uncertain. "Wait, agree with what?"

There was a shuffling sound as Stefan moved toward her, and Damon licked his lips slowly in anticipation of his brother's ruse.

"Yes, I've given this a lot of thought, and I agree that we've both grown enough now to be together!"

Damon's eyebrows skyrocketed, and he suppressed a bark of laughter as Elena spluttered in response to Stefan's sudden enthusiasm.

"I mean, you've matured, I've gotten the blood under control. We're in such a better place now and – Oh God, I can't even keep this going with a straight face!"

The younger Salvatore burst into laughter, cuing the elder to enter.

"He figured it out, Elena," Damon pointed out, taking in her confused expression.

"You looked so horrified!" Stefan exclaimed, still laughing so hard, it encouraged Damon to chuckle a few times as well.

Until Elena glared at him. Then he stopped pretty quickly.

He sauntered closer and slung an arm over her shoulders, pulling her in as she scowled. "So does that alleviate your conscience?"

Her brown eyes snapped over to the still-laughing vampire, and her gaze darkened a little more. "Yes," she said harshly, "I try and do the right thing by everyone, and I get laughed at. Go ahead, Stefan. Keep it up."

"Aw," Damon cooed, pressing a kiss to her hair (stomach leaping because he was _allowed_ to do that), "You can't be _that_ mad at him. Look! He made a joke!"

Stefan's laughter stopped abruptly, replaced by Elena's giggles, and much to Damon's delight, she even slipped a little closer under his arm, tightening her grip around his waist before pulling away.

"Well now that _that_'s settled, I'm just gonna run upstairs and grab my – thing – that I forgot..."

She trailed off and then, blushing furiously, bolted, thumping up the stairs, and leaving a pair of extremely bemused Salvatore brothers in her wake. Damon met Stefan's eyes with a mischievous grin, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a pair of sheer blue panties and winking. Before the younger could say anything, they heard a banging from upstairs, then an exasperated growl, and then Elena came stomping back down. Her eyes narrowed on the item in Damon's palm, then on his face, then at Stefan's smirk.

Damon thought that if he ever had any chance to see someone spontaneously combust, this would be it.

"You," she hissed, storming up to him and snatching the panties away. "I can't -" She cut herself off with a huff and crossed her arms over her chest, pouting.

"Yes, you can," he answered calmly. "This is _exactly_ the kind of stunt I would pull, isn't that right Stef?"

The younger vampire threw his hands up and shook his head, backing away from the couple.

"I'm not getting involved; it's already too weird for me."

Stefan turned and walked away, leaving Damon to stare unabashedly and extremely lasciviously at Elena.

"What?" she snapped at him, although he could already see her melting under his intense gaze. "Damon, why are you looking at me like that?" she asked slowly, warily.

He was sauntering over to her, feeling very much like a predator as he watched her back into the counter and freeze.

"Looking at you like what?" he breathed once he'd cornered her, his eyes on her lips.

"Like you're going to eat me alive."

Something snapped in the air, and Damon pounced, crushing his body to Elena's, mouth open and prying against her soft lips. She let out a soft moan as she writhed against him.

"I waited so long for you," he groaned, breath coming in short bursts as Elena's lips worked on his throat. "And to stand beside you and _not_ have my hands all over you, now that I know what you feel like, what you taste like... It's torture."

"Mm hmm," she hummed, fingers on the buttons of his shirt, when a sharp ringing sound interrupted the proceedings. Damon ignored it, choosing to nip at her soft skin while she pushed, fruitlessly, against his chest. "Damon," she moaned, half-exasperated, half-aroused. "Just... Pause..."

With a laboured sigh, he pulled back, both hands up, palm out, as he stepped away from her.

"Hello," she gasped into her phone, running her fingers through her knotted hair. "Hey Jer! What's -? Oh crap! You're right... No, don't order in. We had Chinese last night for Ric. I'll figure something out. See you later."

She scowled at the phone as she pulled it away from her ear, finally slipping it back into her pocket before meeting Damon's eyes. Her brow smoothed out as she focused on him, and a mischievous grin split across her lips.

"You like to cook, right?"

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><p>The vampire was smirking as he followed his flustered girlfriend into her house. He'd been all hands on the drive over, frustrated that she wouldn't just give in to him already. She'd resisted all of his advances during the day, as she watched him slave over her family's dinner, finally admitting that if he got her into bed, she probably wouldn't leave until the next day, and they still had things to do.<p>

"You can have me all night," she pleaded as he pressed against her back, kissing along her neck as she juggled containers of food and a handful of keys. She finally opened the door and simultaneously unloaded arms as he spun her around. "Let's just have dinner -" He kissed her. "- And then we'll just let the boys know _why_ you'll be staying in my room tonight -" Another kiss. "And... and..."

He felt her finally melt in his arms as he pressed her against the closed door and she knotted her fingers into Damon's hair.

"You're so distracting," she grumbled into his mouth.

"Kind of the point," he huffed back, grinding his hips against hers.

Damon was still in a state of half-shock that this was now his life, that he was allowed to just trap Elena against whatever surface he had available, and press his lips to every inch of her skin he could access. He was just testing his new privilege, sliding his hands up her shirt and kneading the flesh of her back, when he heard a car pull up the drive, and two male voices drifting through the wood of the door.

Story of his life: The second that Elena finally gave into him, the universe cock-blocked him.

"I hate your brother and your stupid pseudo-father," he grumbled against her mouth.

"He's your best friend," she taunted back, brushing past him to collect the food and head toward the kitchen. "Now come help me put this out properly, or you don't get to complain about my lack of culinary skill."

"Coming, dear," Damon sighed, turning the corner into the kitchen just as the other men burst through the front door.

"- Not saying that it isn't valid; I'm just saying it loses some of its legitimacy this way."

The sound of Jeremy chuckling could be heard down the hall. "Whatever, Ric, you're just pissed because you have a thing for redheads, and you like Mary-Jane better than Gwen."

A splutter. "That is so – Hang on. Something actually smells good in here."

There was a thumping sound as the newcomers practically ran to the kitchen, and Damon heaved himself up to sit on the counter.

"They're surprised because you can't cook," he whispered loudly.

"You're hilarious," Elena deadpanned, shoving him lightly.

"'Lena, what did you – Oh!" Jeremy blurted once he'd spotted Damon.

Alaric frowned at his friend before narrowing his eyes on the young woman. "Elena, what's Damon doing here?"

"Yeah, Elena," the vampire drawled, ignoring Jeremy who dove onto the containers of fresh pasta and meat sauce. "What am I doing here?"

Before she could answer, Alaric groaned loudly. "You gave into him!"

"I – what?" she shrieked as Damon barked out a laugh.

"Come on, Elena. You and I both know that he could only look _that_ smug if _you_ gave him a reason."

"And you gave me a lot of excellent reasons," Damon murmured in a gravelly voice, leaning away from Elena tiny fist as she swung at him.

"Dude," Jeremy whined around a mouthful of bread. "That's my sister."

"And that," the vampire snapped back with an amused glint in his eye, jumping off the counter to follow the boy, "Is disgusting. Don't talk with your mouth full."

The younger dropped the roll onto his plate and continued to argue with Damon as they made their way into the kitchen, followed by Ric with an armload of serving dishes.

And as the men all settled into their seats, they missed the single tear rolling down Elena's cheek.


End file.
